Monday Miscellanea

This Week In London’s History

Monday – 5 August 1100: Henry I is crowned King of England at Westminster Abbey.

Tuesday – 6 August 1937: Barbara Windsor is born in Shoreditch in central London. She would achieve fame as an actress, notably in the Carry On films of the 60s and 70s and later as a major character in Eastenders.

Wednesday – 7 August 2001: The Department of Health pays £27 million for a private Harley Street heart hospital, re-nationalising it and bringing it into the NHS. It becomes the first private hospital to be nationalised since the foundation of the NHS.

Thursday – 8 August 1988: The Duchess of York gives birth to her (and Prince Andrew’s) first child in the Portland Hospital in central London. The girl would later be named Beatrice Elizabeth Mary, confounding those who foolishly placed bets on what the new princess’s name would be.

Friday – 9 August 1902: Another royal Westminster Abbey anniversary: more than 18 months after the death of Queen Victoria, the heir to the throne, Edward VII, is crowned king.